The American approach to law enforcement was forged by the experience of revolution. Emerging as they did from the shadow of British rule, the country's founders would likely have viewed police, as they exist today, as a standing army, and therefore a threat to liberty. Even so, excessive force and disregard for the Bill of Rights have become epidemic in todays world. According to civil liberties reporter Radley Balko, these are all symptoms of a generation-long shift to increasingly aggressive, militaristic, and arguably unconstitutional policingone that would have shocked the conscience of Americas founders.

Rise of the Warrior Cop traces the arc of U.S. law enforcement from the constables and private justice of colonial times to present-day SWAT teams and riot cops. Today, relentless war on drugs and war on terror pronouncements from politicians, along with battle-clad police forces with tanks and machine guns have dangerously blurred the distinction between cop and soldier.

obama-”We cannot continue to rely on our military in order to achieve the national security objectives we’ve set. We’ve got to have a civilian national security force that’s just as powerful, just as strong, just as well-funded.”

Disarm all SWAT and riot cops. They are not being used the way they were sold to the public a long time ago.

They were only to be used to go after the toughest criminals, gangs, and fortified drug houses. They were to go after the worst of the worst, not routine, amateur little piddly ass punks. Not for one person with a small personal stash.

It's becoming worse "imo" because of the breakup of families being directed by the Gov by many means. The Family court system is the most abusive of all towards keeping a family together by keeping men out of the lives of Children for discipline and life guidance.

The breakdown of the American family is a sad reality, and will take decades to repair should we ever have the gonads to elect a Gov who cares. The church is failing also in this reguard. "imo"

Department of Agriculture (USDA) Office of Inspector General (USDAOIG) United States Forest Service (USFS) U.S. Forest Service Law Enforcement and Investigations (USFSLEI) Department of Commerce (DOC) Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) Office of Export Enforcement (OEE) National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) National Institute of Standards and Technology Police (NIST Police) National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Fisheries Office for Law Enforcement (OLE) Department of Commerce Office of Security (DOCOS) Department of Commerce Office of Inspector General (DOCOIG) Department of Defense Office of Inspector General (DODOIG) Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS) Pentagon Force Protection Agency (PFPA) United States Pentagon Police (USPPD) Department of Defense Police Defense Logistics Agency Police (DLA) National Security Agency Police (NSA) Defense Intelligence Agency Police (DIA) National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency Police (NGA) Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR) Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction (SIGIR) Department of the Army Counterintelligence activity (CI), United States Army Intelligence and Security Command United States Army Criminal Investigation Command (CID) United States Army Military Police Corps Department of the Army Police United States Army Corrections Command Department of the Navy Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS) United States Marine Corps Criminal Investigation Division (MC CID) Department of the Navy Police (civilian police) Marine Corps Provost Marshal's Office (military police) United States Marine Corps Police (civilian police) United States Naval Academy Police (civilian police) Master-at-Arms (U.S. Navy military police) Department of the Air Force Air Force Office of Special Investigations (AFOSI) Air Force Security Forces Center (AFSFC) Department of the Air Force Police Department of Education Office of the Inspector General (EDOIG) Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Inspector General (DOEOIG) Office of Health, Safety and Security (DOEHSS) Office of Secure Transportation (OST) Department of Health and Human Services United States Food and Drug and Administration (HHSFDA) Office of Criminal Investigations (OCI) National Institutes of Health (NIH) National Institutes of Health Police (NIH Police) Office of Inspector General (HHSOIG) Department of Homeland Security (DHS) CBP Officers and Border Patrol Agents at a ceremony in 2007 Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC) United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) United States Coast Guard (USCG) Coast Guard Investigative Service (CGIS) United States Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Office of Air and Marine (OAM) Office of Border Patrol (OBP) Office of Field Operations (OFO) Federal Protective Service (FPS) United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Enforcement Removal Operations (ERO) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Office of Intelligence Office of Professional Responsibility (OPR) United States Secret Service (USSS) Transportation Security Administration (TSA) Office of Law Enforcement/Federal Air Marshal Service (FAMS) Department of Homeland Security Office of Inspector General (DHSOIG) Department of Housing and Urban Development Office of Inspector General (HUD/OIG) [1] Protective Service Division (HUDPSD) Department of the Interior (USDI) Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) Bureau of Indian Affairs Police (BIA Police) Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Bureau of Land Management Office of Law Enforcement (BLM Rangers and Special Agents) Bureau of Reclamation (BOR) Bureau of Reclamation Office of Law Enforcement (BOR Rangers) Hoover Dam Police aka Bureau of Reclamation Police National Park Service (NPS) Division of Law Enforcement, Security and Emergency Services (U.S. Park Rangers-Law Enforcement) United States Park Police Office of Inspector General (DOIOIG) Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement (OSMRE) United States Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) Office of Law Enforcement Division of Refuge Law Enforcement Department of Justice (USDOJ) Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) United States Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) (since 1973) Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Federal Bureau of Investigation Police (FBI Police) Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) Office of Inspector General (DOJOIG) United States Marshals Service (USMS) Department of Labor Office of Inspector General (DOLOIG) Department of State (DoS) Bureau of Diplomatic Security (DS) U.S. Diplomatic Security Service (DSS) Office of Foreign Missions Office of the Inspector General of the Department of State Department of Transportation Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Office of Inspector General (DOTOIG) United States Merchant Marine Academy Department of Public Safety (USMMADPS) Office of Odometer Fraud Investigation - NHTSA (OFI) Department of the Treasury A Bureau of Engraving and Printing Police (BEP) patrol car. Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau Bureau of Engraving and Printing (BEP) Bureau of Engraving and Printing Police (BEP Police) Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FINCEN) Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation Division (IRS-CI) Office of Inspector General (TREASOIG) Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) United States Mint Police (USMP) Special Inspector General for the Troubled Asset Relief Program (SIGTARP) Department of Veterans Affairs Office of Inspector General (VAOIG) Veterans Affairs Police Legislative Branch Library of Congress, Office of Security and Emergency Preparedness (LOC) Sergeant at Arms of the United States House of Representatives Sergeant at Arms of the United States Senate United States Capitol Police (USCP) United States Government Printing Office Police Office of Inspector General, United States Government Printing Office Judicial Branch Marshal of the United States Supreme Court United States Supreme Court Police Administrative Office of the United States Courts, Office of Probation and Pretrial Services (AOUSC) Other federal law enforcement agencies Independent Agencies and Quasi-official Corporations Central Intelligence Agency Security Protective Service (CIASPS) United States Environmental Protection Agency Criminal Investigation Division (EPACID) Office of Inspector General (EPAOIG) National Aeronautics and Space Administration Office of Inspector General (NASAOIG) NASA Security Services Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Office of Inspector General (NRCOIG) Office of Personnel Management, Office of Inspector General (OPMOIG) Railroad Retirement Board, Office of Inspector General (RRBOIG) Small Business Administration, Office of Inspector General (SBAOIG) Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, Office of Inspector General (FDICOIG) General Services Administration, Office of Inspector General (GSAOIG) Social Security Administration Office of Inspector General (SSAOIG) United States Postal Service (USPS) USPS Office of Inspector General (USPSOIG) United States Postal Inspection Service (USPIS) U.S. Postal Police Smithsonian Institution Office of Protection Services (SI) National Zoological Park Police (NZPP) Office of the Inspector General (OIG) Amtrak Amtrak Office of Inspector General Amtrak Office of Security Strategy and Special Operations (OSSSO) Amtrak Police Federal Reserve Bank: Federal Reserve Police Tennessee Valley Authority Tennessee Valley Authority Office of Inspector General (TVAOIG) Tennessee Valley Authority Police (TVAP) United States Agency for International Development, Office of Inspector General (AIDOIG) "

Department of Agriculture (USDA) Office of Inspector General (USDAOIG) United States Forest Service (USFS) U.S. Forest Service Law Enforcement and Investigations (USFSLEI) Department of Commerce (DOC) Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) Office of Export Enforcement (OEE) National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) National Institute of Standards and Technology Police (NIST Police) National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Fisheries Office for Law Enforcement (OLE) Department of Commerce Office of Security (DOCOS) Department of Commerce Office of Inspector General (DOCOIG) Department of Defense Office of Inspector General (DODOIG) Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS) Pentagon Force Protection Agency (PFPA) United States Pentagon Police (USPPD) Department of Defense Police Defense Logistics Agency Police (DLA) National Security Agency Police (NSA) Defense Intelligence Agency Police (DIA) National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency Police (NGA) Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR) Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction (SIGIR) Department of the Army Counterintelligence activity (CI), United States Army Intelligence and Security Command United States Army Criminal Investigation Command (CID) United States Army Military Police Corps Department of the Army Police United States Army Corrections Command Department of the Navy Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS) United States Marine Corps Criminal Investigation Division (MC CID) Department of the Navy Police (civilian police) Marine Corps Provost Marshal's Office (military police) United States Marine Corps Police (civilian police) United States Naval Academy Police (civilian police) Master-at-Arms (U.S. Navy military police) Department of the Air Force Air Force Office of Special Investigations (AFOSI) Air Force Security Forces Center (AFSFC) Department of the Air Force Police Department of Education Office of the Inspector General (EDOIG) Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Inspector General (DOEOIG) Office of Health, Safety and Security (DOEHSS) Office of Secure Transportation (OST) Department of Health and Human Services United States Food and Drug and Administration (HHSFDA) Office of Criminal Investigations (OCI) National Institutes of Health (NIH) National Institutes of Health Police (NIH Police) Office of Inspector General (HHSOIG) Department of Homeland Security (DHS) CBP Officers and Border Patrol Agents at a ceremony in 2007 Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC) United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) United States Coast Guard (USCG) Coast Guard Investigative Service (CGIS) United States Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Office of Air and Marine (OAM) Office of Border Patrol (OBP) Office of Field Operations (OFO) Federal Protective Service (FPS) United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Enforcement Removal Operations (ERO) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Office of Intelligence Office of Professional Responsibility (OPR) United States Secret Service (USSS) Transportation Security Administration (TSA) Office of Law Enforcement/Federal Air Marshal Service (FAMS) Department of Homeland Security Office of Inspector General (DHSOIG) Department of Housing and Urban Development Office of Inspector General (HUD/OIG) [1] Protective Service Division (HUDPSD) Department of the Interior (USDI) Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) Bureau of Indian Affairs Police (BIA Police) Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Bureau of Land Management Office of Law Enforcement (BLM Rangers and Special Agents) Bureau of Reclamation (BOR) Bureau of Reclamation Office of Law Enforcement (BOR Rangers) Hoover Dam Police aka Bureau of Reclamation Police National Park Service (NPS) Division of Law Enforcement, Security and Emergency Services (U.S. Park Rangers-Law Enforcement) United States Park Police Office of Inspector General (DOIOIG) Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement (OSMRE) United States Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) Office of Law Enforcement Division of Refuge Law Enforcement Department of Justice (USDOJ) Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) United States Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) (since 1973) Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Federal Bureau of Investigation Police (FBI Police) Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) Office of Inspector General (DOJOIG) United States Marshals Service (USMS) Department of Labor Office of Inspector General (DOLOIG) Department of State (DoS) Bureau of Diplomatic Security (DS) U.S. Diplomatic Security Service (DSS) Office of Foreign Missions Office of the Inspector General of the Department of State Department of Transportation Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Office of Inspector General (DOTOIG) United States Merchant Marine Academy Department of Public Safety (USMMADPS) Office of Odometer Fraud Investigation - NHTSA (OFI) Department of the Treasury A Bureau of Engraving and Printing Police (BEP) patrol car. Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau Bureau of Engraving and Printing (BEP) Bureau of Engraving and Printing Police (BEP Police) Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FINCEN) Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation Division (IRS-CI) Office of Inspector General (TREASOIG) Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) United States Mint Police (USMP) Special Inspector General for the Troubled Asset Relief Program (SIGTARP) Department of Veterans Affairs Office of Inspector General (VAOIG) Veterans Affairs Police Legislative Branch Library of Congress, Office of Security and Emergency Preparedness (LOC) Sergeant at Arms of the United States House of Representatives Sergeant at Arms of the United States Senate United States Capitol Police (USCP) United States Government Printing Office Police Office of Inspector General, United States Government Printing Office Judicial Branch Marshal of the United States Supreme Court United States Supreme Court Police Administrative Office of the United States Courts, Office of Probation and Pretrial Services (AOUSC) Other federal law enforcement agencies Independent Agencies and Quasi-official Corporations Central Intelligence Agency Security Protective Service (CIASPS) United States Environmental Protection Agency Criminal Investigation Division (EPACID) Office of Inspector General (EPAOIG) National Aeronautics and Space Administration Office of Inspector General (NASAOIG) NASA Security Services Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Office of Inspector General (NRCOIG) Office of Personnel Management, Office of Inspector General (OPMOIG) Railroad Retirement Board, Office of Inspector General (RRBOIG) Small Business Administration, Office of Inspector General (SBAOIG) Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, Office of Inspector General (FDICOIG) General Services Administration, Office of Inspector General (GSAOIG) Social Security Administration Office of Inspector General (SSAOIG) United States Postal Service (USPS) USPS Office of Inspector General (USPSOIG) United States Postal Inspection Service (USPIS) U.S. Postal Police Smithsonian Institution Office of Protection Services (SI) National Zoological Park Police (NZPP) Office of the Inspector General (OIG) Amtrak Amtrak Office of Inspector General Amtrak Office of Security Strategy and Special Operations (OSSSO) Amtrak Police Federal Reserve Bank: Federal Reserve Police Tennessee Valley Authority Tennessee Valley Authority Office of Inspector General (TVAOIG) Tennessee Valley Authority Police (TVAP) United States Agency for International Development, Office of Inspector General (AIDOIG) "

Even so, excessive force and disregard for the Bill of Rights have become epidemic in todays world.

Paradoxically, the idea that police would protect the rights of the accused and thus avoid having cases thrown out was justification of said professionalization.

It is seldom that we recognize the subtle ways in which the protections the courts (via a communist ACLU) have yielded to the criminal class have induced the tyranny we see, all of said advocacy funded by the extremely wealthy American analogue to British royalty.

21
posted on 01/27/2013 9:47:20 PM PST
by Carry_Okie
(GunWalker: Arming "a civilian national security force that's just as powerful, just as well funded")

We don't have a say in that, it's a decision they all must make individually. Do they remain in the state of us vs. them, or will they recognize the real dangers this country faces, ie. NOT those of us that want to protect ourselves and loved ones, and that want to be left alone.

The county sheriff is the single most powerful political law enforcement entity in his shrievalty - even above federal marshals.

Historically, the sheriffs have the power to "deputize" private citizens in fighting crime and keeping law and order.

I think a powerful case could be made that the best return on investment in these times for our political efforts might be that expended in electing constitutional sheriffs. They are the leaders on the front line. If push comes to shove, this means...

I've been trying to tell people this for years. When cops switched from six-shot .38 revolvers to 15-round 9mm Glocks I knew what was coming. Does anyone really think the ''War on Drugs'' is really about stopping the sale and use of drugs? It's about maintaining power. It's about empowering police to be para-militaries , nullifying the Constitution and filling up prisons.

We always hearing politicians saying we need more police. Really? I’m of the opinion that the police are part of the reason for the escalation of violence in the communities. It’s thought that the militarization of police took off beginning in the 80s. I wonder if violent crimes have also increased proportionately in the same time?

The FBI has also posted on their website that people who quote the Constitution are rabid right-wing, and they have placed US on their Right-Wing list of people to watch, who may be subversive. Now, as to how many FBI agents, beside the head of the FBI, who do believe in and would support this crap is the question I am asking.

So true. I am so proud as I read the Chicago Police Officer blogs and read the comments of officers who are against control, who do uphold the Constitution, who will not violate the oath they took to uphold and protect the Constitutin, our Liberty and Freedoms and Rights, nor would they violate the 2nd Amendment by taking away the guns of law-abiding citizens. They all hate rahm emanuel and obozo and what they have done to Chicago and this country. The old time Irish, vote Democrat cop has had his eyes opened and now understands that the party once known as the Democratic Party is now the Socialist Democratic Party of the USA. The cops hands are tied and they can't do their jobs properly in Chicago...rahm has his boot on their necks, the courts refuse to prosecute or pose a sentence that is meaningful, and the Police Supt. McCarthy refuses to allow the officers to do their jobs and arrest the thugs, because they supply obozo with the votes, and he supplies them with a green light to thug and ruin cities by their feral, violent, immoral behavior. The cops of Chicago are fed up with the left, and other than those who are socialist, will come out and support the citizens, and NOT the Socialist Democratic Pary in Washington.

“Have you ever been pulled over by one of these punks? Not the FBI - but local police punks that feel the need to totally dominate us serfs. Its unbelievable!”

Yes I have and they are definitely punks. Are you from NJ? NJ is full of these assholes. The facinating thing about cops in NJ is the cops in Newark, Jersey City and the urban areas are tough but tend to be professional. It’s the punks in the suburbs who run around with attitude problems.

So glad I moved out of that shithole state. If I didn’t have family living there I would never go back for anything.

“The facinating thing about cops in NJ is the cops in Newark, Jersey City and the urban areas are tough but tend to be professional. Its the punks in the suburbs who run around with attitude problems.”

So true. Here in NJ we thinned their ranks with a property tax cap that cost thousands of cops their jobs, leaving middle-aged police forces (the last hired were the first laid off); those urban cops were hardest hit because they often worked in cities that were dependent on state/federal aid for their pay. The cities haven’t been safe in decades anyway, so I don’t think there will be much impact; because of the whole “racial profiling” nonsense, cops had let the worst thugs have their way anyway.

Right before we started shedding cops they published a figure for the number of cops earning over $100K in NJ; they lost most public support at that point.

“They (for the most part) have already picked a side.
If they can’t keep USA law abiding citizens sufficiently cowed into submission, their next paycheck is in doubt. It won’t be the DOD that attempts to forcibly disarm the populace. It will be local union police forces.”

No doubt; t hey will do as they are ordered. Here in NJ we laid off thousands of them over the last few years; they weren’t effective anyway (they really weren’t allowed to do their jobs), and they cost a ton of money, so I have no complaints as they were let go. A lot of them are looking for opportunites in growing states rather than the dying northeast, because those days are over when they would just keep expanding while crushing the taxpayers. There simply aren’t enough companies and individuals to tax anymore; they bled them dry and chased them out, and what is left (the permanent urban underclass and illegal aliens) don’t pay taxes.

I've lived in the Northeast for the last six months for the first time in my life. I'm headed back to Texas in a few weeks.

It does seem dirty and dead here, with graffiti everywhere, sky-high prices and a sort of resigned moroseness. People seem cheerful about Obama's re-election, which I understand only in the context of sycophantic commitment to an ideal despite the falling and crumbling reality that surrounds it.

Never completely. Partly, maybe. There are only a spare few federal crimes listed in the Constitution. One of them, piracy, wouldn’t have anything to do with the FBI. Some handful of Washington’s powers could be seen as necessitating a force like it. But traditionally, and when I say that I mean according to how the Constitution is written rather than how our central government de facto operates, police powers are reserved for state and local authorities. JFK’s murder was a matter for Dallas police, which means as late as ‘63 there was no federal law against killing the freakin’ president.

I've lived in the Northeast for the last six months for the first time in my life.

You have my deepest sympathies. The northeast is an immoral sewer...Red Hampshire just 'doubled down on depravity' by electing two of the most vile women imaginable to Congress and another as Governor. They join Senator Jeanne Shaheen as a true female 'axis of evil'.

37
posted on 01/28/2013 3:17:47 AM PST
by who knows what evil?
(G-d saved more animals than people on the ark...www.siameserescue.org.)

I’ve lived here my whole life, and it certainly is deteriorating. I see nobody cheerful about Obama’s re-election (I noted before the election the absence of Obama stickers even in the ghettoes, whereas they were everywhere in 2008); even blacks I work with who voted for him did it as much as out hatred for whites as anything else. They are always lamenting how much worse things are; maybe they just believe it isn’t his fault. They reminisce about the cruises they used to take, they new cars they used to own, etc. (they were just making it into the middle class when things fell apart); they got a taste of a better life and now it is gone.

There is nothing sunny or optimistic here, and I feel there won’t be for years. We are bleeding our youngest talent, and importing illegals to simply keep schools open and housing afloat. Tell them in TX what to look out for (just kidding, apparently they already know).

We need to end the image of police officers as Law Enforcement and return to the original intent: Peace Officers. The purpose of the police is to maintain the peace. Law enforcement can be done by a monkey.

They’re civilians and no better or smarter than any other civilians. We’re all in this together and the “professionalism” needs to be service oriented.

In Chicago our police motto is “to serve and protect”. Our fire motto is “we’re there when you need us”. The irony should be obvious.

Yeah, I’ve been pulled over a few times. Speeding, expired registration, that kind of thing. I can’t honestly say that I’ve ever met a cop in my personal dealings that was anything other than professional and polite.

I wish FReepers would stop posting that nonsense about the county sheriff being the most powerful law enforcement, blah blah.

One more time, for the record: Like the office of the governor, the power of the sheriff is derived from the state constitution. Some states have governors with strong executive powers, and some states do not. Likewise, some states grant sheriffs broad powers, and some states don’t. Some states like CT, and AK don’t even provide for the office of sheriff. In some states the sheriff is just a job that is filled and vacated by hiring and firing not an elected official. Some states grant the office broad law enforcement powers, others relegate them to process servers, and a handful use them exclusively as jailers.

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